Method of forming roadbeds for railways



W. P. DAY

METHOD OF FORMING ROADBEDS FOR RAILWAYS Feb. 4, 1930.

Filed May 23, 1929 3 Sheets-Sheet flfiZEA TOR A TTORNEY Feb. 4, 1930/ w, DAY I 1,745,744

METHOD OF FORMING ROADBEDS FOR RAILWAYS Filed May 25, 1929 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 A TTORNEY Feb. 4, 1930. w. R DAY METHOD OF FORMING ROADBEDS FOR RAILWAYS Filed May 23, 1929 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 [d/VVENTOR W 7 ATTORNEY Patented Feb. 4,, IFBQ WILLIAM PATRICK DAY, OF CLEVELAND HEIGHTS, OHIO METHOD OF FORMING ROADBEDS FOR RAILWAYS Application filed May 23,

This invention relates to a method of forming a roadbed or foundation for railways and the main object of the invention is to provide a roadbed which will be impervious to water and in which the concrete or other plastic material forming the roadbed is caused to bond with the rails, to prevent cracks or crevices along the rails as a result of cars passing thereover. Another object of the invention is to provide a roadbed construction of the character described in which the rails, ties and concrete are bonded together and the concrete is con densed and solidified so as to eliminate voids and to provide a roadbed of maximum strength which will resist the vibration of the track due to heavy. loads passing over the same and will not'perrnit water to seep in adjacent the rails.

Further and more limited objects of the invention will appear as the description proceeds and by reference tothe accompanying drawing in which Figs. 1,2, 3 andt are vertical sectional views through the roadbed illustrating the several steps in the method of forming the same; Fig, 5 ,is a fragmentary view in side elevation disclosing a rail and twin ties for supporting the same; and Fig. 6 is a fragmentary plan view disclosing a pair of steel twin ties with the rails secured thereto. Y

Heretofore it has been quite diflicult, if not impossible, to obtain a roadbed construction for railways which would prevent water from seeping in along the rails. This has been due to the fact that the vibration of the rails as a result of cars passing over'the same has caused or produced crevices or cracks along the rails through which water may enter. According to my method of forming the road bed, I eliminate this difliculty by vibrating the rails while the concrete or other material formingv the road bed is still green or soft and continuingthis vibration until the material sets, that is, until all flow or setting has ceased. This vibration of the rails causes the concrete or other material to settle and to substantially eliminate all voids. This vibration also causes the concrete or other material to bond with the steel rails and ties so that fur- 1929. Serial No. 365,304..

ther vibration of the rails by cars passing over the same will not produce or cause the aforementioned cracks or crevices along the rails. Moreover according to my method I am able to use from 5% to 15% more concrete in the same space and thus greatly increase the strength of the roadbed. The foundation as a whole solidifies, eliminating all voids between the steel and concrete which has not been the case with any roadbed construction now known. By eliminating these voids between the steel and concrete and by providing a more perfect bond between the rails and concrete I greatly increase the structures ability to shed water and to resist vibration and therefore greatly prolong the life of the structure as a whole.

In forming the road bed I first provide a trench which is slightly wider than the length of the standard tie and of such depth that the top of the rail will be disposed level with the road surface. In this trench I arrange a plurality of blocks 1 and 2 which are preferably formed of concrete. These blocks 1 and 2 are arranged in pairs as disclosed most clearly in Fig. 6. I then place upon these blocks 1 and 2 steel ties of the twin type which are well known to those skilled in the art and are shown most clearly in Fig. 6. The rails 3 and l are then secured to the ties by means of the tie clamps 5, 6 and 5, 6, in a manner also well known to those skilled in the art. The trench is then filled with soft concrete up to the level shown in Fig. 2. The concrete is preferably delivered to the trench from a concrete mixer which is moved forward at the rate of about one foot per minute. While the concrete is still green or plastic, the track is vibrated by means of a vibrator or pulsator which may be either mechanically or pneumatically operated and is preferably moved along the track from 10 to 25 feet behind the concrete mixer. The vibrator is moved along the track at the rate of about one foot per minute. In Fig. 3 I have dis- 95 closed one type of vibratorhwhich consists essentially of a plate or'bar 7 on which are mounted hammers 10 and 11 adapted to be reciprocated to tamp or vibrate the track. These hammers are preferably operated pneumatically although a mechanical vibrator may be used if desired. The number of blows or vibrations given to the track is preferably between 5200 and 6000 per minute. The vibrations of the track" are transmitted through the ties with the result that substantially the whole mass of concrete is subjected to the vibrations and tends to settle and become more dense and by the time that the concrete has settled, it will have assumed the level shown in Fig. 3. As the vibrations of the track are imparted to the ties, the concrete tends to flow along and between and against the rails and to bond therewith as Well as to the ties. The vibration of the rails also tends to substantially eliminate all voids in the concrete and provides a structure which is exceedingly strong and which will shed water. There will be no cracks or crevices left along the rails and hence there will be no chance of water seeping in along the rails. After the concrete has hardened and set, further vibrationsof the rails as a result of cars passing thereover will not destroy the bond between the concrete and rails or cause crev ices along the rails.

A layer of surface material is then applied which may consist of asphalt, concrete or any other suitable material. This upper layer of material is allowed to harden and set and the roadbed is completed.

If desired, the trench may be first partially filled with crushed stone or other suitable material and cement-grout or other suitable material poured on top of the crushed stone. The track is vibrated in the manner hereinbefore described so as to cause the cement to penetrate through all the voids in the stone.

It is of course understood that various changes may be made in the road forming materials used and in the method of arranging the various parts as well as in the manner of delivering the concrete or other material and in the manner of vibrating the track without departing from the spirit of my invention. It is also understood that my method is not limited to any particular type of tie or to a tie formed of any particular material, although a better bond is obtained when steel ties are used. While I have used the term concrete in this specification, I do not wish to be limited to any particular mixture of sand, cement, stone or other material but have used the term generically to mean any mixture of a bonding material, such as cement 'or asphalt, with sand, gravel, stone or other material.

It is therefore to be understood that my invention is limited only in accordance with the scope of the appended claims.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim is -1. The method offorming a roadbed for railways which consists in laying the track, then pouring concrete between and along the rails and vibrating the rails to cause a more perfect bond between the rails and the concrete.

2. The method of forming a roadbed for railways which consists in laying the track, then pouring a plastic reinforcing material along the track and vibrating the track.

3. The method of forming a roadbed for railways which consists in laying the track, then pouring a plastic reinforcing material along the track and vibrating the track until the plastic-material has set.

4. The method of forming a roadbed for railways which consists in laying the track, then pouring a plastic reinforcing material along the track and vibrating the track until the plastic material has se't,and then applying a layer of surface material.

5. The method of forming a roadbed for railways which consists'in laying the track, then depositing a plastic concrete filler along the track and simultaneously vibrating the rails to substantially eliminate voids and to form a bond between the rails and concrete.

6. The method of forming a roadbed for railways which consists in laying the track, then depositing plastic concrete between and along the track, vibrating the track while the concrete is still een to cause the concrete to settle and to orm a bond between the track and concrete.

7. The method of forming a roadbed for railways which consists in providing a trench and la ing the track therein, then substantially filling the trench with plasticconcreta and vibrating the track while the concrete is still plastic to cause the concrete to settle and to bond with the track, allowing the mass thus formed to harden and set and'then applying a layer of surface material.

a 8. The steps in the method of forming a roadbed for railways which consists in laying a track within a trench, depositing within the trench between and along the rails a mass of reinforcing material containing particles of stone and cement and vibrating the rails to cause said material to settle and eliminate voids and allowing the mass thus formed to harden and set.

9. The method of forming a roadbed for railways which consists in providing a trench of greater width than the track, arranging a plurality of ties within the trench, laying the rails on the ties and securing the same thereto, then depositing plastic concrete within the trench, vibrating the rails while the concrete is still plastic to cause the concrete to settle and to bond with the rails and ties and allowing the mass thus formed to harden and set.

thereto, then depositing plastic concrete within the trench, vibrating the rails while the concrete is still plastic to cause the concrete to settle and to bond with the rails and ties, allowing the mass thus formed to harden and set, and then applying a layer of surface material.

11. The method of forming a roadbed for railways which consists in providing a trench of greater width than the track, arranging a plurality of steel ties within the trench and supporting the same above the bottom of the trench, securing the rails to the ties, depositing a mass of concrete within the trench and vibrating the rails to cause the concrete to settle and bond with the ties and rails and allowing the mass thus formed to harden and set.

12. The method of forming a roadbed for railways which consists in providing a trench of greater width than the track, arranging a plurality of steel ties within the trench and supporting the same above the bottom of the trench, securing the rails to the ties, deposit ing a mass of concrete within the trench and vibrating the rails to cause the concrete to settle and bond with the ties and rails, allowing the mass thus formed to harden and set, and then applying a layer of surface material.

13. The method of forming a roadbed for railways which consists in providing a trench of greater width than the standard track, arranging a plurality of steel ties within the trench spaced from the bottom thereof and securing the rails thereto, substantially filling the trench with a plastic composition including concrete, vibrating the rails while the composition is still plastic to cause the same to settle and bond with the rails and ties and substantially eliminate voids and allowing the mass thus formed to harden and set.

14. The method of forming a roadbed for ,railways which consists in providing a trench of greater width than the standard track, arranging a plurality of steel ties within the trench spaced from the bottom thereof and securing the rails thereto, substantially filling the trench with a plastic composition including concrete, vibrating the rails while the composition is still plastic to cause the same to settle and bond with the rails and ties and substantially eliminate voids, allowing the mass thus formed to harden and set, and then applying a layer of suitable road surface material.

15. The method of forming a roadbed for railways which consists in providing a trench of greater width than the standard track, supporting a plurality of steel ties on blocks arranged within the trench, laying the rails 'on the ties and securing the same thereto, substantially filling the trench with a plastic composition containing crushed stone and cement, vibrating the track for a sufiicient period of time to cause the plastic composition to settle and bond with the rails and ties and substantially eliminate voids and allowing the mass thus formed to harden and set.

16. The method of forming a roadbed for railways which consists in providing a trench of greater width than the standard track, supporting a plurality of steel ties on blocks arranged within the trench, laying the rails on the ties and securing the same thereto, sub-' stantially filling the trench with a plastic composition containing crushed stone and cement, vibrating the track for a sufficient period of time to cause the plastic composition to settle and bond with the rails and ties and substantially eliminate voids, allowing the mass thus formed to harden and set and filling the trench with a road surface material.

17. The method of forming a roadbed for railways which consists in laying the track and depositing a plastic concrete filler along the track and simultaneously vibrating the rails to cause the plastic filler to settle and bond with the rails and continuing such vibration until the concrete has bonded with the rails.

18. The method of forming a roadbed for railways which consists in providing a trench of greater width than the track, arranging a plurality of steel ties within the trench and securing the rails thereto, pouring concrete between and along the rails and simultaneously vibrating the rails and continuing such vibration until the concrete has bonded with the rails.

19. The method of forming a roadbed for railways which consists in providing a trench of greater width than'the track, arranging a plurality of steel ties within the trench, laying the rails on the ties and fastening same thereto, then depositing plastic concrete within the trench, vibrating the track while the concrete is still plastic, to cause the concrete to settle and the mortar of the concrete to flow around the rails and ties and bond the rail, ties and concrete into a unified structure.

20. The method of forming a roadbed for railways which consists in providing a trench of suitable width, supporting a plurality of ties within the trench, laying a pair of rails on the ties and securing the same thereto, depositing within the trench a layer of plastic composition containing crushed stone and cement, vibrating the rails and ties for a sufficient period of time to cause the plastic composition to settle and bond with the rails and substantially eliminate voids and allowing the mass thus formed to harden and set.

21. The method of forming a roadbed for railways which consists in providing a trenchof suitable width and depth, supporting a plurality of ties within the trench, laying rails on the ties and securing the same thereto, depositing within the trench a mass of plastic composition containing crushed stone,

sand and cement, yibrating the rails and ties for a suficient period of time to cause the plastic composition to settle and bond with the rails and substantially eliminate voids, allowing the mass thus formed to harden and set, and applying a layer of road surface material.

22. The method of forminga roadbed for railways which consists in laying the track consisting of one or more pairs of rails, supported on suitable ties, depositing a mass of concrete between and along the rails, vibrating the rails and the ties supporting the rails while the concrete is still soft to cause the concrete to settle and eliminate voids in the concrete and to bond with rails.

23. The method of forming a roa'dhed for railways which consists in laying the rails and supporting the same on suitable ties, depositing a mass of concrete along the track, vibrating substantially the entire mass ineluding the rails and ties while the concrete is still soft to cause the concrete to settle and.

- eliminate voids therein and to bond with the signature.

WILLIAM PATRICK DAY.

awa'iee 

